I just got one of these and it has this issue that it wonāt turn on unless I power cycle it after each turn off. And it does that both on 14500 and NiMH. The tint is very yellow (I got the NW), nowhere close to two other 3D lights I have. The springs left dents in the bottom of two NiMH I used (a Fujitsu and a Ladda), although not in the 14500. Pretty bad even for a $10 light.
Crap. My first NW with the good LED is starting to have the button problem.
Whatās the procedure to fix this?
Is it the clicky switch thatās starting to wear out?
I havenāt had it for so long, maybe 200-300 clicks on it at most.
If itās starting to wear out they really must have putted in the cheapest ones or recycled parts.
Switch to electronic switches they saidā¦
Those switches were designed to work millions of times they saidā¦
I received my UT01 yesterday from GB.
It cost me $11.22 and is my worst buy.
I put in a 14500 and pressed the button a few times - YELLOW was my first impression and disappointment.
Then I measured the tint and the lumens values:
3865 K and offset (duā,dvā) = 0.018 which is very, very yellow/green (outside all of Creeās bins).
The four levels were: 4-23-110-370 lumens (about half the promised value).
Now I put in an Eneloop battery: It would not even turn on!
Put in again the 14500 and the three lower levels worked, but high level only for one second, then it switched to 4 lm.
I know this behaviour from the old TrustFire F20 where some of the drivers burned the 1.5 V booster when exposed to a LiIon battery and could only be used on LiIon after that.
Thats the way my UT01 is now and I can only see this light as an expensive modding host.
Are these switches? Purchased from where?
Thanks.
UI change in the programming feature? (read below)
Received mine recently (3D) Installed a regular Alkaline primary cell and it worked great, real nice tint - very warm neutral, switch works fine and all modes are working. 
The programmable function is also working, but slightly different than described in the OP and earlier posts (the user manual still has nothing about programmable output levels) I first used the instructions from the OP, but these instructions posted in the Discussion thread also worked, except for double tap to exit (had to do a long press to exit):
However for mine there were only 3 programmable modes instead of 4, after I set levels for 3 modes it just goes to high and is no longer auto-ramping, it just remains steady on high, then a single click to strobe, then long press to exit.
I also posted about this in the discussion thread and someone else who ordered one in December replied theirs also had only 3 modes that were programmable. (I ordered mine on Dec. 19th) So it appears they may have changed it to remove programming for HI mode. Iām wondering if that was because when it first came out a few people reported a lower than advertised maximum output, only to discover the default programming for HI wasnāt set to the maximum level.
Can anyone else who also ordered one recently confirm this?
The differences between levels on high are very minor so itās easy to miss. Make sure you are using a fully charged cell when programming. On a partially depleted cell you wonāt see much if any difference between them.
I agree. I noticed the same apparent effect with an alkaline.
With a NimH or a lithium primary, the differences in the ātop threeā were still close together, but noticeable. I donāt think an alky can surrender enough energy to fully satisfy the highest settings.
Thanks, Iāll charge up a 14500 and do the paper clip mod and check it again. will reply here with the results.
Large paper clip isnāt going to work, not thick enough, going to need a lot thicker wire, meantime I checked again with a new alkaline 1.6vā¦absolutely no auto ramping in the HI mode programming, not event the slightest bit, I even checked in total darkness. Just stays lit steady.
ā¦looking for copper wire now
Got some 12ga copperā¦
14500 Button top fits nicely now, but only about 2 full turns of the threads, just barely covers the o-ring when snugā¦
Awaiting chargingā¦ then Iāll try programming again and post resultā¦Canāt wait to see how this little guy rocks out on a Li-ion.
Also I just found out someone else who ordered one in December and only has 3 programmable modes, that makes 3 of us nowā¦all 3 December orders.
I think people that are experiencing only 3 programing modes instead of 4 have batteries that need to be charged. Battery is not strong enough to provide maximum current for turbo. Try a fresh battery or charge the one you are using.
Can you try a fully charged NiMH cell?
I am afraid that even a brand new alkaline will not be able to deliver enough current to allow you to see differences between the various turbo levels.
Thanks Vwpieces for the switch info.
V V V
OK I got the 14500 charged and tried again. BINGO!
As Pete7874,Tumbleweed48 and 264 suggested the problem was the battery, the HI mode does not program with an alkaline cell, even a new one with 1.6v. With the 14500 Iām now able to program all 4 modes.
Thanks Pete7874,Tumbleweed48 and 264 for your help!
This wire looks way too thick. You just need something to help the tube end make electrical contact with tailcap contact ring.
I think those double springs do more harm than good. When you collapse one cone upon another, there is a dramatic increase in thickness - you can literally hear the ācrunchā when closing the cap on an unmodified light. Reach down in there with the end of a pencil, collapse those springs, and youāll see what I mean. They pile up to about the same thickness that the wire trick reclaims.
Add some internal length with the wire trick, and the ācrunchā is gone. Iāll bet if one of those springs were removed, the length issue would be gone without the wire trick being necessary.
Am I going to try it? Maybeā¦but all of mine are now running flawlessly with the wire trick, so Iām reluctant to mess with success.
āJust throwing my $0.02 inā¦.
I have received and tinkered with my Utorch Ut01.
First impressions are the light is excellent. Without programming, I found the highest setting to be shy of 800 lumens with a Sanyo UR14500P 840mAh Battery. After programming it is quite a bit brighter. The programming steps are pretty easy and many have posted them here.
After programming, I put an Ikea Ladda 2450 mah rechargeable cell in, Note: Many believe this is a re-wrapped Panasonic eneloop at a bargain price. The light at my estimate puts out about 350-400 lumens with the lesser current of a AA. Iām sticking to the 4.2V li_ion 14500s.
This light is a very god value for what youāre getting at around $10 US!
Built in charging like some of the of the Utorch offerings would be nice but I am just being greedy.